Taxi driver who chased killed boy for throwing snowballs jailed for six years

Burcu Purtul Uçar – ISTANBUL

A taxi driver in Istanbul who chased an 11-year-old boy in his car, leading to the child’s death, has been sentenced to six years and three months in jail. 

Istanbul’s Bakırköy 3rd Court of Serious Crimes found Özhan Güven, who had chased 11-year-old Yusuf Salih Özdağ on Dec. 13, 2013 in his taxi, guilty of killing Özdağ by deliberate negligence. 

The court also ruled for the canceling of Güven’s driver’s license for one year. 

Özcan Acar, the person who hit Özdağ on Istanbul’s E-5 highway after the boy stepped onto the highway while running away from Güven who was chasing him in his taxi, was sentenced to one year and eight months in prison for reckless man slaughter and his driver’s license was disabled for three months. 

Taking into consideration that Acar had never before committed a crime, regretted the incident, and was unlikely to commit a crime in the future, the court decided for the suspension of the punishment. 

Güven had started chasing Özdağ in the Sefaköy neighborhood of Istanbul after the boy threw a snowball at him and his car on Dec. 13, 2013. Trying to escape the car, the 11-year-old boy stepped onto the E-5 highway, but he was hit and killed by Acar, who was passing by in his car. 

Speaking after the court’s ruling, Ertekin Özdağ, the father of the killed boy, said they had expected Güven to be locked up for at least 20 years. 

“We have been hurt once again by this decision. There is no justice. We will appeal the ruling,” Özdağ said.